The Story Of The Face-Planting Yellow Bird

I am way behind on blogging lately.  So black sheep of me.  And it’s not because I’m not writing.  It’s because I am, elsewhere and in other ways!  Life is amazing and crazy, but I’m totally enjoying the ride. I haven’t blogged about our new house or anything since writing a review for Andee’s book!  Our new home is simply totally awesome.  I can’t explain it enough – where you live matters.  Even when the changes seem small.  It matters.  This place is so good for us right now.  It’s not too fancy, but it feeds the soul.  And isn’t that what we all could use more of?  I must get some good photos and try to show you some of the amazing things happening in my back yard.  I have tadpoles!  TADPOLES!  😀  Can you believe it?  I love it!

And school will be out for the kids soon!  Which even as a parent, I dearly look forward to.  Summer’s when the kids and John and I finally get to just connect as a family, without all the crazy running and stress because of this assignment or another, or because of club or school events, etc..  We think of a 40-hour work week as full-time work, but most kids, most good students, spend far more time than that on education every week.  It doesn’t seem to be until summer when we can just be ourselves and pursue our own interests individually and as a family together. And just honestly get some well deserved rest.  And me? I tackle some more focused work and planning done during that time too,  ‘cuz I work from home anyway.  Summer is my time to get ready for holiday shows.  And I’m adding a book to my work load as well.

Well, there’s a lot of news to share with you!  Including a couple of awards this blog has won (even while I wasn’t writing), how my daughter started her own blog (she has a quirky personality online and off) and how we’re getting ready for A-Kon in Dallas next weekend.  You should totally see Jess’ tail coat that she designed, then created a pattern for and then made, with some expert guidance from Paula, an amazingly talented seamstress in our town.  I am so incredibly grateful for her, because she knows how to help Jess with her far-too-advanced-for-me ideas.  Oh, and my son is in the middle of doing “flower-sack babies” for health this week.  It’s been rather comical watching him juggle “McGregor” his flower-sack baby AND his cat.   And of course there is much writing taking place.  Articles, books, etc..  I’ll have to tell you about them as I can/am allowed.  Oh yes, I will keep you in the loop.  (And hopefully, all this points to an income.)  Plus our high school Spain trip with EF Tours looms ever nearer, and we are fundraising like crazy suckers trying to get our funding together.  So much.  So much.

Well, I thought I’d start up on the blog again by telling you about an interesting experience I had yesterday. It involves a little yellow bird…
So I’m sitting outdoors with my laptop to work yesterday morning, enjoying the shade and pleasant temperatures. I know that later it won’t be this pleasant and I’m soaking up as much of my new backyard as possible. When suddenly a little brown and yellow bird plunges (falls, not lands) from above into the little flower bed next to me. At first glance, I thought it was a larger sized humming-bird with its slender beak. Then I see the color, size and shape and realize not at all. It looks like a warbler or a bunting, but not sure. Brown top, bright yellow breast.  The beak was totally different from I would have expected and the bird had white stripes on the side of the head on either side of its eyes. It looked kind of like a cross between a sparrow, chickadee and the yellow part of a goldfinch, with the beak of a hummingbird. Really slender little beak.  [Update: beak and yellow color looked a little like this prothonotary warbler! But with striping and such.]

At first I really thought it fell out of a tree.  Then I thought it was diving after a bug in the mulch, but I noticed again that it was leaning heavily to one side. Suddenly it falls forward and does a total face plant!  With its tail straight up in the air and its beak straight down into the mulch! “Are you OK?”  I speak to it, then get up and come over when it stays still. It’s not dead, but it’s obviously exhausted somehow.

It doesn’t struggle much when I pick it up from its face plant and it opens its beak wide. One of its eyes droops closed a bit. It does not look like a baby to me, but I sense extreme exhaustion and hope he isn’t dying. I take it to the waterfall in my yard and get a drop of water on my finger to give it. Then I carry it to my bird feeder to pick up some seeds. I open my hand and it sits quietly in my palm, leaning slightly to one side, letting my fingers support it. I notice some tiny “ruffled” feathers on its neck. Which I then reach to smooth, wondering if it’s injured.

At that touch, after being so calm all this time, the little bird freaks out as if it just woke up and suddenly realized I was there, chirps at me and flies away, landing on my neighbor’s roof.  I watched for a while, it didn’t roll off.

I wonder if one of the neighborhood cats took a swipe at it? Or maybe a grackle or hawk? I looked for a nest above where it fell, but did not see one.

What a curious experience! I wish I could have gotten a photo!

Well, so that’s my latest little backyard adventure story.  I shall have to catch you up on the rest of life, my mis?adventures with a snake in my pond and maybe wrangle a few decent photos somewhere.  Until then, be well.  Stay safe.